More than 400,000 people come through the doors of the Canada Science and Technology Museum each year.

But with a national mandate, the museum has the potential to reach out to between 20,000 and 28,000 more students as far away as Nunavut, thanks to a new program.

The museum’s EDUKITs — which provide access to science education to students from coast-to-coast to-coast — brings the museum to kids who may not have the opportunity to come to Ottawa, said John Bouza, executive director of the Canada Science and Technology Museum Foundation.

Yesterday, the foundation announced a new event that would raise money for youth programs like this. To be held April 22, 2010, the inaugural Science and Tech Soirée: The Magic of the Museum, will give an opportunity to future generations to discover the world of science and technology.

University of Ottawa biomedical science student and national winner of the 2008 Sanofi-Aventis BioTalent Challenge Maria Meriziotis still remembers how visits to the museum as a child inspired her to enter the field of science.

Museums have an important role to play, she said. “It stimulates curiosity, encourages learning, and fosters future generations who have an appreciation and a love for science and technology.”